Someone Isn't Me (But Someone Will Love You)
by pokemon fan 98
Summary: 5x20 AU. When Ralph is talking with Caitlin in the arctic worksite, Frost reminds him that he's a good person – and reminds herself that she has friends who care about her. Friendship, not romance (like in the actual episode).


_A/N: I just have to preface this - I don't ship Ralph and Frost romantically. I love their friendship, which I think is one of the strongest on the show. When Caitlin and Ralph had their scene in the last episode (their acting was phenomenal, by the way), I kind of wanted Frost to take control and reassure him, in her direct, active way. Because we know that she tends to act more impulsively than Caitlin, to get things done faster. And since she was hurting so much, I think she would have tried to make them both feel better. So here's one take on what she could have done._

* * *

"I'm just not made to be loved."

There was a weakness in his voice that kept her from speaking, though the reassurance that she knew he could love, could be loved, was ready to be spoken. She didn't know what to do.

Frost wasn't speaking either, as his words settled in her ears. She wasn't sure she knew which direction was up at the moment, lost in her grief, but she'd been listening for his voice since they'd come to the worksite. Since he'd shown that he was worried about _her_ after Thomas's death, when all the others had only asked about Caity.

She didn't know why she did it, but she jumped into control, looking at him standing before her. And she kissed him.

Just for a second. An instant. But in that heartbeat that the contact lasted, she felt something that wasn't the grief tearing her apart inside – something that made her feel like she could actually go back to normal. The grating pain dulled as she used him as an anchor, and she let go of his shirt quickly, looking at him.

He was looking at her with widened eyes.

"Guess that got you to shut up," she said, as Caitlin started freaking out in their head. Frost wasn't freaking out, though.

"You – we – what just…"

Frost almost smiled. "Relax, Ralph. I don't love you or anything."

He seemed genuinely confused. "Why did you -?"

_Because I wanted to feel something positive, _she thought, _and a kiss fit that bill more than a hug._

_Because you're one of the best friends I have, and I wanted to show you that you're lovable, since telling you wasn't enough. _

_Because it snapped both of us out of our funks._

"You were getting all mushy," she said instead. "We have a job to do."

She heard Caitlin disagreeing. Her sister suddenly understood exactly why Frost had kissed Ralph, and wanted Ralph to hear those reasons too. She understood that there was no romance in the gesture (she was very glad to find that out, actually). She understood that Frost had needed human contact. It was truly a desperate move on her part, to feel something other than pain. Maybe she was turning soft, because Ralph's fears that he wasn't lovable had gotten to her. Any other day she would have scoffed at him, maybe even slapped him for being so stupid. But since she was hurting… his fears translated a little more effectively, and she empathized. Kissing him had given her a solution to both problems: she had a physical reminder that her friends were there to support her, and Ralph was reminded that he was a good, warm person. It was completely selfish, with a dash of honorable intention.

"Frosty," Ralph said, very seriously, "I need you to know… I don't feel that way about you."

"I don't feel that way about you either," she said, immediately and earnestly. She saw the slight shock in his eyebrows at her direct response, and then the relief in his face that they were on the same page. "Someone will love you, Ralph," she said, a little less bluntly. "It won't be me, but there's someone out there for you. So don't talk like you're a monster that can't be loved, okay?"

She thought he got it, then. Ralph dipped his head, locking eyes with her, and turned to look around the room again, in seemingly higher spirits. Frost breathed out low as she started looking around too. She'd been scared by how much emotional pain she'd been in. That wasn't over, but she didn't feel trapped in it anymore. She didn't feel isolated from the world anymore.

Her raw grief started processing and turning into something else – rage. She couldn't wait for another chance to kick Cicada's ass.

It was almost ten minutes later when Ralph spoke again, letting her know that things wouldn't be weird between them:

"I never said I was a monster, for the record."

Frost rolled her eyes.

* * *

_A/N: Have you ever read a scene like this, when a kiss is meant to prove what kind of person someone is, rather than that the ones doing it are attracted to each other? Like I said, I love Ralph's friendship with Frost. I think he's more serious with her than with anyone else on the team, and she's more genuine with him. They open up to each other. Cisco is the best friend for Caitlin, but Ralph is there for Frost. In this case, they both left feeling more like themselves._


End file.
